Mini Turkey Meatloaves (gluten free)

Meatloaf is good. Mini Turkey Meatloaves are better.

Hey everyone! It’s been awhile since I’ve posted anything new. I needed to take a break to refocus myself. I found that I was creating new recipes, trying to meal plan, and crank content out, but I forgot the most important thing. Quality. My recipes and pictures (especially my pictures) weren’t meeting my own expectations. They were lack-luster and just blah. So I stopped, took a step back, and focused on what makes me feel good. The next couple recipes you’ll see are all comfort foods. Foods I grew up on or new dishes that are inspired by my family’s cooking.

There was a lot of ground beef on the dinner table when I was growing up. Sometimes it was chili or stuffed green peppers, but most of the time it was hamburger pie or meatloaf. My mama’s meatloaf was good- still is! It’s a classic recipe. Mama Haines throws in your standard meatloaf mixings: bread crumbs, ketchup, and an egg. There’s some seasoning in there too. I used what I could remember from Mama’s recipe as a base and put my own twist on it. I replaced the ground beef with ground turkey. It has some more health benefits, but honestly I just prefer it. I also added hidden veggies because I LOVE veggies! If you look real close, you’ll find onions, green bell peppers, and carrots inside. Lastly, I turned my meatloaves into minis and opted to bake them in a cupcake pan instead of the standard loaf pan. This makes portioning easier and it cuts down on baking time because unlike Mama Haines, I can be super impatient! The last change I made was replacing the breadcrumbs with oatmeal. Oatmeal is a wholegrain and contains more fiber than breadcrumbs, plus it’s gluten free! I myself do not follow a gluten free diet, but I have a few friends who do- and I’m always forgetting to buy breadcrumbs anyway.

These mini meatloaves are great for meal prepping and getting your daily dose of veggies. Plus they taste damn good! Meatloaf is definitely one of my favorite comfort foods and this recipe is now part of my weekly dinner rotation (along with Tamale Pie…recipe coming soon!)

Make sure to share this recipe with a friend!

Mini Turkey Meatloaves

Yield: 10 mini loaves

Prep Time: 10 mins

Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients

2 tsp olive oil

1 carrot, grated

1 small onion, chopped small

1/2 green pepper, chopped small

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 lb ground turkey

2/3 c oatmeal, slightly ground in food processor

1/4 c ketchup

2 tsp Worcestershire

1 egg

Salt and pepper to taste

1/2 c ketchup- for glaze

1 T brown sugar- for glaze

2 T apple cider vinegar- for glaze

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375°F

Heat oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add carrots, onion, garlic and green pepper with a pinch of salt. Cook the vegetables until most of the moisture has been cooked out, stirring occasionally. When moisture is cooked out, set vegetables aside to cool for 5-10 mins.

While vegetables are cooking, combine ground turkey, oatmeal, egg, and 1/4 c ketchup with a pinch of salt and pepper. Mix with your hands (or a wooden spoon) until mixture is well incorporated. Add in cooled vegetables and mix well.

Grease a cupcake pan and fill each one to the top. Filling should not go too far over the edge. Bake for 15 mins.

While meatloaves are baking, make the glaze. Mix 1/2 c ketchup with brown sugar and apple cider vinegar. After meatloaves have cooked for 15 mins top with glaze and bake for an additional 15 mins.

Notes

Mini turkey meatloaves can be kept in the fridge for 3-4 days or frozen for a quick and easy reheat-able dinner!